ReadNOW

When it comes to heart health, a lot of advice is straightforward: Eat a balanced diet, exercise regularly, and avoid vaping.

But sometimes, even the healthiest-seeming lifestyle choices can backfire, especially if done in excess. “Any extreme is likely not good for you,” Dr. Dmitry Yaranov, a heart transplant cardiologist at Stern Cardiovascular in Tennessee, known on social media for his tips on heart health, told Business Insider.

Yaranov, who is the director of the advanced heart failure program at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, said he sees a fair amount of younger patients in their 20s and 30s. Some come in with few risk factors, coming in for chest pain or arrhythmia concerns, only to learn that one part of their weekly routine could be leading them to future heart disease.

“You may look fit, but it doesn’t mean you’re healthy,” Yaranov said. He shared some common habits that may appear like longevity hacks, but can contribute to heart issues later on.

Eating a restrictive high-protein diet

Overall, protein is great for your health. Eating high-protein foods can help with weight loss, muscle growth, and hormone regulation.

When it comes to the heart, research on protein is mixed. Because some forms of protein have higher cholesterol (such as red meat and dairy), eating too much of them may negatively impact heart health. In one 2018 study, men in their 40s to 60s who followed high-protein diets (and consumed mostly high-cholesterol foods) increased their risk of heart failure by 50%.

While athletes may feel motivated to fit in as much protein as possible, Yaranov said that eating way more than your daily recommended amount can overwork your kidneys, leading to inflammation. (Inflammation increases your risk of heart disease.) Plus, he said, taking ultra-processed protein supplements, such as protein powder, can also negatively impact cardiovascular health.

“I’ve seen bodybuilders and athletes who look great, but they lack balance” when it comes to their diets, Yaranov said. “They end up with weak hearts and blocked arteries.”

Related stories

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know

He’s a fan of the Blue Zones and Mediterranean diets, which feature both heart-healthy protein sources like fish and beans and anti-inflammatory foods like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Only drinking on the weekends

In general, there’s no safe amount of alcohol you can drink. However, the National Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention says that if you want to stay within healthy limits, you shouldn’t exceed more than seven drinks a week (one a day) if you’re a woman and 14 (two a day) if you’re a man.

There’s a caveat, though: you should avoid binge drinking, defined as four or more drinks per occasion for women and people over 65, and five drinks for men. Yaranov said some of the “sickest hearts” he’s seen in younger patients in those who drink too much at once.

These patients “don’t necessarily drink daily, but they go hard on the weekends,” he said. Some might even stay sober throughout the week, working out every day and eating a balanced diet. But “this one day of heavy alcohol use, it’s not going to go unnoticed.”

Excessive drinking can cause a host of heart problems, from abnormal heart rhythms and heightened blood pressure to a greater risk of developing heart disease. The most common alcohol-related issue Yaranov sees is dilated cardiomyopathy, in which the heart’s lower chambers become enlarged and weakened, unable to pump blood properly.

In the end, it’s better to have a mid-week glass of wine than pound back shots on a Saturday night, Yaranov said.

In some cases, smoking weed

Cannabis use has risen over the years, with some people swapping weed for alcohol entirely as a more “natural” recreational drug.

Yaranov said he is concerned about a 2025 study showing that frequent marijuana use is linked to increased risks of heart attack and stroke.

He said that members of the medical community are still learning about the full effects of cannabis on heart health and what the proper guidance should be around using it.

Research on the topic is mixed and limited — some studies found cannabis use had no effect or even a positive effect on heart health. It’s also difficult for researchers to isolate cannabis from other substance use, such as alcohol, drugs, or tobacco.

In the meantime, Yaranov said he sees lots of younger patients with heart issues who otherwise have no risk factors except for heavy marijuana use.

“With cannabis use as a daily habit, I think it’s important for us to have this conversation now,” he said. “A lot of times, this comes from this idea that it’s harmless because it’s an herb. I don’t think that’s the case.”

Pushing your workouts to the extreme

Yaranov said that endurance athletes can experience “athlete’s heart,” a remodeling of their heart, with some heart muscles thickening to adapt to high-intensity training. While athlete’s heart isn’t itself dangerous, it can mask or mimic more serious heart conditions, like hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a genetic condition that causes thickened heart walls and can lead to cardiac arrest.

He said this is very rare — you’re more at risk of athlete’s heart if you’re a highly skilled athlete than if you just went too hard at the gym a few times. The bigger heart issues might stem more from the rise-and-grind lifestyle of working out.

If a person frequently foregoes sleep to squeeze in those 5 a.m. workouts, they’re increasing inflammation in their body, which is directly tied to cardiovascular risk. Poor sleep can also elevate stress, which leads to excess cortisol production, blood pressure elevation, and greater visceral fat.

Yaranov said that healthy stress and sleep levels are harder to quantitatively measure than, say, your cholesterol. People also vary in what sleep schedules work for them or in how they channel stress.

“We know it hurts you, but we don’t know how much stress is enough to hurt you,” he said. As with everything else, he said that balance is always the key to great heart health.